Crash
by Mahanaxar
Summary: One year after Ultimecia's defeat, Balamb's heroes are invited to the unveiling of a memorial in their honor in Esthar. All is well until the Ragnarok loses power midflight and sends its passangers careening towards a mysterious island.
1. Prologue

Blue skies and rays of sunlight peeked through the canopy of trees that greeted his blue eyes as they opened. He lay on the jungle floor and as he woke was overcome by a distinct sense of tranquility as his blurred vision came to focus. He would imagine that birds would be happily chirping as they flew overhead but no such sound came. No sound came at all. It was quiet, peaceful, and very very warm. He hated not knowing where he was; not being in control but this was somehow different. It was all he could do to lay back and let the warm breeze pass over his body as he continued to just stare at the treetops above him.

His trance was rudely interrupted by a sharp pain in his shoulder. He slowly turned his gaze to his right to see his arm bent in a way that arms were probably never meant to bend. He sat up in a panic and looked around him as if the surrounding trees would give him answers. He attempted to move his right arm and his efforts were rewarded with another sharp pain that indicated to him that his shoulder had been dislocated. How? By whom? By _what_? Where was he? Was he dreaming? Was he deaf?

His last question was answered upon tugging his right arm with his left forward as hard as he could and the first sound he heard since waking was an audible 'pop' followed by the slow and sore movements of a newly-relocated right arm. A symphony of sounds slowly began to build and register in his ears. It started as a low hum and steadily crescendoed into a harsh mixture of shouting and what sounded like a mechanical roar. A thousand thoughts and questions fought for territory at the forefront of his mind and he reached to scratch the back of his head as he often did when confused or deep in thought. Through the leather he felt something slippery and quickly brought his gloved hand back into his view to reveal blood. Frantically he reached back again and discovered that the source wasn't deadly or overly deep. He'd live. His thoughts and self-diagnosis, however, were interrupted by one sound that rose above the clang and clamor that seemed to envelop him in his state of confusion. It was a shrill female scream followed by a single word:

"SQUALL!!!"

_Rinoa!_

Squall stood as quick as he was able and fought off the initial dizziness that threatened assault. In a state of horror and panic he felt for the small box that occupied the inside pocket of his leather jacket but it was nowhere to be found. It would have to wait. It had waited long enough as it was…

Squall willed his legs into motion and ran towards the direction of the scream. The sound of the ocean was added into the mass of sounds as the mechanical roar grew louder. Light became more abundant and the trees more sparse and after as he ran at full speed. Squall tried his best to avoid all obstacles and was grateful for the protection of his leathery attire despite the heat as branches from offending trees and bushes would have ripped normal clothes to shreds at the rate he was moving and his unprotected face bore the scratches to prove it.

After five minutes of solid running he found himself at a beach. The salty air filled his nostrils as he stopped to catch his breath. In the sand a good distance in front of him stood a smoking heap of twisted metal that had once been the draconic shape of the Ragnarok. Smoke billowed from the flames that spouted out of its metal carapace and its engines whirred to life and then back to rest in an arrhythmic pattern that threatened to drown out all other noise. Squall's legs burned as he ran faster still towards the wreckage looking frantically for signs of life when he saw her.

Rinoa knelt down in the sand with tears streaming down her delicate face and in her arms she cradled the limp body of Quistis Trepe. Squall immediately rushed to her side and fell to his own knees beside her.

"Rinoa!" he shouted, battling the noise of the craft's engines. "Hyne, Rinoa, tell me you're alright!"

Squall put a comforting hand on his girlfriend's shoulder as he tried desperately to make eye contact. The young woman was sobbing as she clutched the motionless form of her friend to her chest.

"I can't…" she managed to say between sobs, her eyes still shut tight.

"Rinoa, where are the others!?" Squall demanded in as comforting a tone as could be managed amidst his panic.

"I can't... cast… Quistis…"

Rinoa trailed off and anything said afterwards could be labeled incoherent at best as her shaking body could do nothing but cry. Squall wrapped his good arm around her shoulders and pulled her closer as he looked down at Quistis and saw a sizeable piece of metal protruding from her chest.

_Fuck._

_

* * *

_**A/N:** Hey guys! Thanks for reading my first attempt at fanfiction ever. If it seems a bit rough right now just bare with me, it'll (hopefully) get better. I would greatly appreciate any and all comments or reviews you'd be willing to give, though if you must criticize please make it constructive. :) 

This was just a prologue and the following chapters will be quite a bit longer so stay tuned for another exciting episode of… _Crash_. I'll try and update as frequently as I can so I don't leave y'all hanging too badly. :-P

Maha out.


	2. Chapter 1: Turbulence

**A/N**: Hello again. So this is the first official chapter of this story and it starts a bit before the prologue as you might imagine. This story will largely be from Squall's point of view, I think, and whenever you see parenthetical italics _(like this)_ that indicates his thoughts. Kinda like in the game but without the dialog box. I took a few liberties with some details left out of the game such as Xu's last name but I'm sure no one will mind. This chapter is a little long, but consider it a double-length pilot episode of a television show if that helps. A lot of exposition is needed to sort of recap some important events of the past year. I think that's about all I have to say at this point, now for your regularly scheduled disclaimer.

**Disclaimer**: I do not own Final Fantasy, it's characters, or Square-Enix in any way shape or form outside of my mildest dreams (the wildest being the ones where I fly and shoot lasers out of my eyeballs). Don't sue me or I'll be sad.

* * *

'Till I opened my eyes and walked out the door  
And the clouds came tumbling down  
And it's bye-bye goodbye I tried  
Dredging the sea of a trouble mind  
Had to leave myself behind  
Singin' bye-bye goodbye I tried

If you wrote me off  
I'd understand it  
'Cause I've been on  
Some other planet  
So come pick me up  
I've landed...

-"Landed" by Ben Folds

**Chapter 1: Turbulence**

(Eight hours earlier:)

'_Dear Squall,_

_Hello! How are you doing? We haven't talked in a while and I keep getting your voicemail whenever I call, but I guess you're a pretty busy guy. You really need to get some people like Kiros and Ward (they send their love, by the way) working for you, they handle all my official stuff. We really should sit down and have dinner sometime. Bring Rinoa too! I've love to see you all again and that's kind of why I'm writing this letter._

_As I'm sure you know two weeks from today is the one year anniversary of you all defeating the evil Ultimecia! The world is forever in your debt, which I'm sure you've heard a thousand times before, but I came up with the idea of putting up a memorial of sorts to commemorate the event._

_The ceremony will be at 19:00 on Saturday, June 9__th__ right in the center of the city so you may want to get here a day or two early to get settled and whatnot. Oh! And make sure to tell Rinoa, Quistis, Zell, Irvine, Selphie, and anyone else you think to bring with you. Cid and Edea have already confirmed that they're going to be there so it would look bad if the commander of Balamb Garden decided not to show up. Ha! Just kidding! But seriously, it would be great to see you again. It's been too long. You'll find rooms reserved for you all in the presidential palace._

_If you have any questions or anything PLEASE call me! See you soon!_

_Love,_

_Dad'_

Squall neatly folded the presidential letterhead and tucked it safely into his left pants pocket. It was only a little over a year that he had discovered he _had_ a father and he was not about to start calling Laguna 'Dad' anytime soon. Still, the man wouldn't relent. At times the eccentric president of Esthar's enthusiasm approached Selphie on a sugar high and given her mood swings lately Squall shuddered at the thought. He peeked through the opening in his office doors to see Xu at her desk busily typing something on her computer. If he was lucky he'd be able to slip by unnoticed, but he was never lucky. Not when it came to Xu.

"Leaving early, sir?" she asked, not looking up from the soft glow of her monitor.

Squall stopped mid-stride in front of his assistant's desk. 'Assistant Commander' she would often call herself though Squall was always quick to retort with an 'Assistant _to_ the Commander'. In Xu's eyes the titles meant the same thing. Really, he was eternally grateful for her help. Xu Shin was hard-working, loyal, and very thorough. If anything could be said about her it was that she was _too_ thorough and a stickler for protocol. She reminded him of a shorter, darker Quistis.

"Yes," Squall replied. "Laguna wants us to be there a few days early and Cid insisted on giving us the Ragnarok to fly over this afternoon. I would stay if I had a choice in the matter."

He inwardly braced himself for the slew of reports, instructions, reminders, or anything else Xu would think important enough to tell him before he left but to his delight and surprise she simply looked up, smiled, and said, "Have a pleasant trip, sir. Don't worry, I'll handle things while you're gone."

Small returned with a weak smile and a nod and walked towards the elevator. Fortunately it was already on the third floor and he wouldn't have to stand there awkwardly. Squall Leonhart had changed quite a bit in the past year but he still wasn't the best conversationalist in the world. Opening up for him was a slow and oftentimes painful process but at least he was trying. Sometimes. The soft ding of the elevator sounded as it reached the first floor. Squall walked quickly and with quiet purpose towards the dormitory wing, his eyes on the ground as if following the colored guiding paint. Passing students and SeeDs alike would nod or salute in passing out of respect but they knew better than to expect a response. It would take much more than a year to turn a lone wolf into the family dog. When he walked down the hall that led to his newly-apportioned "Commander's Suite" (which he was very against receiving calling it things like "unnecessary" and "extravagant") he was surprised to find the door cracked open. Caution and suspicion immediately took over as he slowly pushed the door. It swung noiselessly on its hinges and Squall stepped inside with slow, controlled steps. He deftly palmed a letter opener that sat on an end table beside his black leather couch in the living area and held it pointed end forward as he followed a feint sound coming from his bedroom. As he neared his open door he carefully peeked around the frame to see the backside of Rinoa bent over a suitcase on his king-size bed.

Her midnight hair cascaded down the back of her favorite blue duster and just barely covered the angel wing design on its back. Her hair was longer than it was during the second Sorceress Wars and it secretly drove him crazy (in a good way). A sigh of relief escaped his lips as his shoulders eased and the sound caused the young sorceress to turn around smiling. How he missed that smile. He hadn't seen her in two days, though not of his own doing. Quite the contrary. It just seemed that the at times overwhelming responsibilities associated with being the garden's ambiguously-titled commander coupled with their miniature vacation in Esthar had given him enough paperwork to pave every street in every town worldwide with stacks of memos and various and sundry forms an inch thick. Even with Xu's diligence he always seemed to find himself swamped. It was the part of the job he hated, a part that was slowly but surely threatening to become the whole of the job. Too many long nights in the office made him irritable and reclusive which was a huge step backwards towards the old Squall and away from Rinoa's Squall. It was often the subject of many heated arguments that left him distant and withdrawn and left Rinoa in tears. He hated making her cry and hated what this job was doing to him. He longed for nothing more than to be sent out on missions with Lionheart in hand where the only thing he had to worry about was following the objectives and getting his team out alive. He hadn't been on a mission in months and even then he had no reprieve from his administrative duties. But they were just that: duty, and Squall was a slave to duty. He was a slave because he was afraid to quit just as he was afraid to commit which is why his carefully-worded resignation letter rested in the inside pocket of his leather jacket right next to a small black box holding a diamond ring he had bought two months ago.

"What's with the letter opener?" she asked with a mock-innocent grin.

Squall shifted his weight from his left to his right foot and scratched the back of his head as he often did. "I… um… needed to open a letter… in my bedroom?" Squall offered sheepishly with an awkward smile. He casually tossed the object to a corner where it landed with a soft thud.

"Is that so?" she asked, her tone taking a turn for the seductive. She approached him slowly, swaying her hips intentionally as she did. She brought her body as close to his as she could without touching and stared up at him with her big brown eyes. Squall's body instinctively stiffened and then relaxed as she placed a slender hand behind his neck. With a husky voice she half-whispered, "I can't find any letters, but I have something else you can… open."

Squall closed his eyes as he inhaled her scent: a light airy smell that took him back to their private field of flowers. He wrapped an arm around her waist and felt his already tight pants get a bit tighter. She was getting better at this, but Squall wasn't one to go back on his word. Being the staunch moral conservative that he was, Squall had insisted that they wait until they were wed before giving themselves to each other sexually. Rinoa respected his wishes but they left her feeling a bit… frustrated at times. Plus it was really fun to tease Squall. She was no tramp, though, as she had never known a man in the poetic sense but Selphie wouldn't shut up about it and it piqued her curiosity as well as her teenage hormones. Squall, on the other hand, had a lot of practice shutting himself off from people so he responded by smiling and kissing her on the forehead before changing the subject as quickly as humanly possible.

"So what're you doing with my suitcase? And how did you even get in here?" Squall said laughing a little, which is not something he would have ever done a year ago.

"It was unlocked so I let myself in," Rinoa mused with a broad smile, turning back to the suitcase.

_(Unlocked? Since when did I ever leave my door unlocked? I'm losing my mind.)_

"Aaaaand," Rinoa continued, turning back around to face him and catch his gaze, "I'm helping you pack. We're supposed to leave in an hour, you know." She spun daintily back around and placed the last article of clothing (that looked a bit too colorful to be his) she had laid out on the bed snugly into the suitcase and quickly zipped it up. Squall walked towards her and wrapped his arms around her, clasping his hands above her navel. "I've missed you," she whispered.

"I've missed you too," he said softly as he brushed her long hair away with his face and gave her a light kiss on the right side of her neck. "I'm sorry I haven't been around much lately, but with the Trabia Garden reconstruction project and everything else I've just been so…"

"Busy?" Rinoa finished, her tone dropping. "You know there is a way we could see more of each other."

"Rinoa, you know how I feel about that."

Squall could feel Rinoa's skin prickle and backed up a step, releasing her from his grip and immediately regretting opening his mouth. She slowly turned around and with a mixture of hurt and aggravation in her voice asked, "Why do you automatically assume I'm pushing you to invite me to live with you? I'm not Irvine; my mind has more than one track. _Lunch_, Squall. I was going to suggest we meet for lunch every day. You know, like we used to? It would be nice if you could fit that into your busy schedule."

She brushed past him in a hurry, her brow furrowed in anger, and stormed towards Squall's bedroom door. Before she could enter the living room he grabbed her wrist and said, "Rinoa, I love you."

Rinoa looked back at him blankly, squared her shoulders, and said, "Then act like it."

* * *

The makeshift hangar was busy with activity as the large dragonship Ragnarok was being prepped for takeoff. The gear-heads at Fisherman's Horizon were kind enough to install something of a landing pad area jutting off from Garden's garage complex. Brown metallic support beams attached to the underside of the floating fortress and attached themselves to a small platform that attached to the outer door of the leftmost part of the garage which was converted into a docking bay for the craft. Most of the vehicles that once resided there were damaged by the attacks from Galbadia Garden in the war anyway. Esthar never did bother to reclaim the ship after the six heroes had "borrowed" it during the chaos and wrote it off as a goodwill offering for saving everyone's collective asses. Truthfully, it had come in handy more than a few times since then though Squall was never for using it for personal reasons. Cid assured him that this was a diplomatic mission of sorts and that the use of a "swift military vessel" was completely within reason. The old man always did have a way with words.

The chime of the PA system echoed off the metal walls of the garage and Squall checked his watch.

_Good morning ladies and gentlemen, this is your captain speaking. The Ragnarok will be departing for Esthar shortly at which time we will follow suit and depart from Centra arriving on Estharian shores in approximately 36 hours time. Maintenance team B please report to basement level 1. Have a pleasant rest of the day!_

Nida had certainly found his niche within Balamb Garden. He'd come a long way from the distinctly forgettable face in Squall's graduating class after becoming the pilot (or 'captain', as he called it) of the Garden since the last Sorceress Wars. That along with his rumored relationship with the authoritative Xu did much to bolster his confidence as well as popularity.

Squall leaned against a wall in the noisy garage as he watched maintenance workers shuffle about noisily. He was early as usual and waited patiently for the others to arrive quietly sipping a cup of coffee. Irvine was the first to walk through the doors, sauntering his way over to Squall with a tip of his trademark cowboy hat. Like Squall, Irvine always wore his jacket no matter the weather and it flowed behind him like a strange tan cape. His boots made a very unique metallic sound as they each made contact with the garage floor until he came to a halt before the young commander.

"Mornin', Squall," he greeted. "You haven't seen Selphie, have you? She said she was going to get some breakfast but I couldn't find…"

"BOOYAKA!"

A blur of green and blue rushed towards the two men and nearly bowled Irvine over. He stumbled back as an energetic Selphie collided with him.

"Ohmyhyne I'm soooo excited! I haven't flown in FOREVER!!!" she said, her face lit up like the sun. No… _brighter_ than the sun.

Just watching Selphie made Squall tired. He didn't envy Irvine in the least and wondered on a daily basis how he managed to keep up with her. Still he seemed to love every bit of her enthusiasm. It made her unpredictable and spontaneous and that was exactly what the notorious skirt-chaser needed. Even so the commander wondered exactly how someone seven months pregnant could move that fast. Yes, Selphie _Kinneas_ was carrying a little cowboy (or cowgirl) which served as the best evidence that the couple didn't share Squall's inhibitions regarding premarital sex. The news came as a shock to their little group of friends but to everyone's, including Selphie's, surprise Irvine was delighted. She was scared out of her mind that he would freak out and bail out, so to speak, but when the cowboy heard he was to be the father of Selphie's child he dropped to one knee and proposed to her on the spot using his hoop earring from the top of his left ear as a temporary engagement ring. Naturally she thought he was the sweetest thing in the universe and agreed with an "OF COURSE I WILL!" that could probably be heard throughout the entire Garden. After a passionate bout of engagement sex, Selphie immediately went to work on planning her own wedding. Who else would do it? After all, planning events was her gift. To this day no one is quite sure how she pulled it off but in three months time Selphie, who was already beginning to show, and Irvine were wed in Balamb town in one of the most extravagant weddings, not to mention receptions, anyone had ever seen. People were still talking about it four months later as everyone expected Squall and Rinoa to be the first of the six heroes to tie the knot… including Rinoa.

Selphie stood there hanging on her husband's arm wearing a faded pair of jeans and a lime-green tee that showed off a bit of skin from her bulging midsection and read "Save a Chocobo, Ride a Cowboy" with the outline of the iconic bird behind the white lettering. The shirt had to be Irvine's. The sound of the door sliding open could be heard and with it the soft footsteps of one Miss Rinoa Heartilly. She gave Irvine and Selphie a wave and Squall a glare before entering the cargo bay of the Ragnarok to deposit her belongings.

Irvine whistled and with a pat on Squall's back said, "Good luck with that, brother." Squall could've sworn the couple was skipping just to spite him as they entered the craft. It was going to be a long flight.

Quistis was the next to arrive with her things packed neatly into one medium-sized suitcase, efficient as ever and always in her peach battle suit that looked fashionable enough to wear as pretty much anything. She gave Squall a smile as she passed and entered the ship. That left Zell and his girlfriend from the library, the one with the pigtails. Squall checked his watch impatiently. The martial artist was late as usual. As if on cue Zell came bursting through the doors to the center of Garden complete in his skater garb and carrying too much luggage for any one person.

"Yo Squall! Sorry I'm late, you wouldn't believe how many people don't watch where they're going," Zell shouted as he jogged past.

"He insisted," said the girl behind him who was blushing furiously and who Squall remembered as Amelia, or Amy as she liked to be called. They'd be introduced a few times since Zell had the courage to finally ask her out at the wedding of the century. The two raced past and entered the ship. Finishing his coffee, Squall slowly followed in behind them and signaled the mechanics that they were ready for takeoff.

Selphie sat snugly in the cockpit with the seat pushed back a few inches to accommodate her new girth and was busy flipping various switches and turning dials. Doctor Kadowaki was not at all happy about a young lady in her third trimester flying, much less _piloting_, in something like the Ragnarok but Selphie was the only person who remotely knew what she was doing in the seat of the bizarre ship. Irvine, of course, rode shotgun in the co-pilot's seat. He didn't have the slightest idea what he was doing but Selphie had slowly been trying to teach him. Quistis and Rinoa were busy chatting in the two seats behind them. Across the aisle Zell was busy stuffing his face with a hotdog he had wrapped and pulled out of one of the deep pockets in his denim shorts while Amy rolled her eyes and giggled softly. Their relationship always puzzled Squall as he didn't think Zell knew what a book _was_. Opposites attract, so they say, and whatever they had seemed to work. That left the commander to the seats in the back by himself and that was just as well. He wasn't in the mood to talk to anyone anyway. Within moments the hum of the engines grew progressively louder and the ship rolled forwards to the outdoor platform. Selphie had perfected the craft's unique vertical takeoff and soon they were airborne.

The first few hours of the flight proved uneventful. Selphie and Irvine were happily discussing baby things, Amy was napping on Zell's strategically placed arm while the combat king bobbed his head to the music on his mp3 player. Quistis resigned herself to a book to no one's surprise and Rinoa simply stared out the window next to her. She still hadn't spoken a word to Squall since that morning in his apartment and he couldn't help but be a bit worried. Their arguments were becoming more frequent and lasting longer than their little tiffs in the past. To make things worse both parties were quite stubborn but this time Squall knew he messed up. Still she needed time to cool off before he would talk to her about it.

Suddenly all the lights in the cabin went out. Squall straightened his posture and looked about frantically as a collective gasp sounded throughout the seven passengers. After a few seconds the lights came back on much to everyone's relief.

"Sorry!" a slightly shaken-up Selphie called from the front of the vessel. "I'm not sure what happened there, there seems to be some kind of disturbance. Hold on and buckle up, kay?"

Squall reached for his seatbelt and fastened it with a reassuring click that joined the chorus of similar clicks from the others. The Ragnarok began to steadily shake and Squall gripped the armrest tightly. Rinoa looked back at him and made eye contact for the first time since the garage. To their relief the shaking slowly dissipated and the ship leveled off.

"Shit!" came another female shout from the cockpit followed by a thud of a fist pounding metal. "The instruments are going haywire," Selphie said, her tone turning deathly serious. "I don't know what's going on but I'm gonna put 'er down somewhere so I can figure it out. Sit tight and don't get…"

Darkness. The lights went out a second time and they could hear the roar of the engines slow to a soft purr and then stop. A moment of weightlessness occurred before the Ragnarok began to rapidly fall. Everyone shouted or screamed in surprise. Selphie was fumbling with controls at the front of the ship and Squall reached his hand over the seat and entwined his fingers in Rinoa's.

"I'll be alright," he whispered over and over and though he didn't see them he could feel the tears running down her face.

"The backup generator should kick in any moment!" a panicked Selphie shouted from the darkness of the cockpit. As if on cue a dim light shone throughout the cabin and some of the lights on the instrument panel flickered to life, the craft still falling fast.

"Baby, the thrusters are gone! You're gonna have to glide us down!" Irvine shouted, feeling heavy against the restraints of his safety belts.

Zell was busy securing Amy who had since passed out and Quistis sat up rigidly straight with her arm rests in a death grip. All Rinoa and Squall could do was look into each other's eyes. There were a multitude of things they wanted to say to each other but neither could find the words. They just stared.

Selphie grunted as she pulled up hard on the controls of the craft looking desperately for a place to land, an island, anything. All that could be seen in the noonday sun was water. They were falling fast and the North-East islands that dotted the Centra continent were too far spread out. At this rate they were going to crash into the ocean and there was nothing they could do about it. They grew nearer and nearer, their screams and cries growing louder and louder. Blood rushed to Squall's head and began to feel very woosy when the ship lurched backwards a bit as if it passed through something.

"What the fuck?" Irvine shouted out of despairation.

"An island! There's an island there!" Selphie screamed, a tiny bit of hope in her voice. "I'm going to land there! Hold onto something, this is going to be rough!"

Selphie pulled up on the throttle, desperately trying to level the speeding Ragnarok from its collision course with this island that seemed to pop up out of nowhere. It wasn't on any of the instrument maps or geographic sensors but at this point no one cared. At that moment it was their only chance at survival.

Faster and faster the ship fell as Selphie slowly began to level it.

"SQUALL!!!" was the last thing anyone heard before the deafening impact of high speed metal on sand. The Ragnarok bounced once off the beach of the island and threw everyone back in their seats, slamming their heads against walls and anything else in the vicinity. As it landed a second time a louder ripping sound reverberated throughout the ship as the back half dislodged itself from the front raining metal shrapnel down and flinging the back two passenger benches into the air. The hull of the ship creaked and began to crunch down upon itself as the bow slid on the white sand before it digging a deep trench as it went.

Wind bit Squall's face as his seat was thrown from the craft and he struggled with his safety harness. The next thing he knew was darkness.


	3. Chapter 2: Revival

**A/N: **Hello again. I actually got a reviewer! Hooray! I didn't really expect feedback this early so thank you **Jayliyah **for your encouragement. As you might expect, this chapter picks up where the prologue left off so just pointing that out to avoid any confusion. I borrowed the ideas of phoenix downs being used as combat medicine from altol (who in turn borrowed it from xahra99 [both of whose boots I am not fit to lick) and just expounded on the specifics a little. I understand simplicity was necessary for the game mechanics of instantly going from dead to alive in one turn but I thought the process should be a bit more drastic and involved seeing as you'd be bringing someone back to life. Science + magic win!

Anyway…

Why can't Rinoa cast? Is Quistis dead? Where the hell are they? What happened to the others? Will Zell survive without any hotdogs to eat? Stay tuned to find out!

**Disclaimer:** Nothing's changed from last week. I still don't own FFVIII, its characters, or the company that created them. If I do somehow secure the rights you'll be the first to know.

* * *

**Chapter 2: Revival**

There was a loud ringing in her ears as Selphie slowly opened her eyes to the unwelcoming view of the Ragnarok's flight control panel. Lights flickered and a few sparks fell from some exposed wire above her head which quickly turned to ash and were carried away by the soft breeze. The young pilot's eyes went from squinting to saucer-like when realization of what happened hit. Her first instinct was to reach down around the awkward and twisted safety belt harness and grab her belly. Much to her relief nothing seemed wrong, however her second instinct did not prove to be as reassuring. Irvine was gone. A large piece of metal on the right side of the ship's "head" was missing along with her husband who she expected to be seated in the copilot's chair beside her. Panic overtook her and Selphie let out a muffled cry and frantically unbuckled her safety belts. Once freed, she stepped carefully across the center of the cockpit and across the other seat. Ducking her head out the gaping hole she called out, "Irvine!" No answer. With adrenaline now pumping through her veins she bit down on her lip and without hesitation jumped through the opening.

Selphie landed ungracefully on her feet from the sizeable drop and fell to her knees. No sane person would have just up and dashed through a jagged hole in the side of a crashed ship with a fifteen-foot drop, especially if said person was pregnant, but this was Selphie Tilmitt-Kinneas and she happily defied logic on a daily basis. She clenched her teeth through the initial pain of the impact on the surprisingly soft sand. Dizziness threatened to overtake her as the world around her started to spin but after a moment she gained her bearings and stood up. Selphie frantically looked around her at the debris and again called out the cowboy's name.

"IRVINE!!!!"

"Hyne, I heard you the first time," a pained voice came from behind her.

Selphie spun around and practically threw herself in the direction of the voice, knocking Irvine off balance for the second time that day. She threw her arms around him and squeezed with as much force as she could sobbing, "Oh Irvy… I thought I'd lost you."

Irvine wrapped his right arm around her back and stroked it gently after wincing briefly at the squeeze. He let out a hissing sound and said, "Easy, darlin'. Watch the arm."

Selphie quickly withdrew and looked at him with worry. He had taken off his duster and his left arm was in a makeshift sling from torn shirt fabric. "Baby, what happened? Are you alright?"

Irvine offered back a soft smile, his long unbound (and notably hatless) hair blowing in the breeze. "Well I was kinda thrown out that big hole up there," he said in his typical drawl, "and lucky for me my arm came between me and the ground. I think it's broken. Are you ok?" Placing his hand on his wife's stomach he continued with more than a little worry in his voice, "What about the baby? He didn't get jostled around too much in there did he?" Under normal circumstances Selphie would have found his paternal concern adorable and more than likely would have rewarded him with the act that rendered him paternal in the first place, however their dragon-shaped spaceship had just fallen out of the sky and crash landed on some island that appeared out of nowhere. Needless to say the circumstances were far from normal.

"We're fine, we're fine," Selphie said quickly. "Just a bit woozy is all. Have you seen the others?"

"I haven't seen or heard anyone, babe. I just got..."

Irvine's words were interrupted by a shout that could belong to no one else but Rinoa.

"SQUALL!!!"

Both Irvine and Selphie's heads turned in the direction of the sound, looked back at each other and started walking towards the noise. They would've ran but Selphie was still feeling quite dizzy and given her condition neither wanted to take any unnecessary risks more than they already have. They passed the mangled fuselage of the ship as they neared their destination and just ahead could see a determined Squall racing in front of them. They tried to get his attention with shouts and waves but he didn't seem to notice. He just ran over and knelt down beside Rinoa who was holding something in her arms. When Irvine and Selphie caught a glimpse of what that something was their pace quickened tenfold. A few moments after Squall arrived, Irvine and Selphie came running behind him.

Upon seeing his bloodied friend Irvine let out a poignant, "Oh shit, Quisty…" Selphie could only stare in shock while catching her breath.

Squall delicately reached to the blonde's neck and placed two fingers on her pale skin. Rinoa was still quietly sobbing yet holding her as still as she could. Squall grimaced as his hands failed to feel the subtle throbbing of a pulse.

Turning around to face the Kinneases he barked, "I need phoenix downs and any potions you can find! Go!"

The two brunettes nodded and quickly rushed off into the exposed cargo bay of the Ragnarok. They moved as fast as they could while avoiding the jagged metal from where the back portion of the ship was violently ripped from its front. Both began practically tearing through the wreckage searching every nook and cranny of the battered craft. Compartments in the cargo bay were torn open both by the crash and by the frantic Selphie and Irvine but nothing of use could be found other than pieces of their meager luggage they each packed which had been strewn about the beach. After wasting several precious moments scouring the cargo hold the couple left the severed back part of the ship and ran towards the other. I occurred to them that it probably would have been smarter to split up but they didn't have time for that kind of rational thought. When they came to the exposed passenger cabin they quickly climbed inside to find Zell with an open first aid kit gently pouring a Hi-Potion down his girlfriend's throat. The blonde's usual exuberance was gone and replaced with a grim determination that didn't suit him at all. He had a long slash down the right side of his face beginning at his eye and ending at his chin that was dripping an occasional droplet of blood onto Amelia's skirt as she lay across the half-dislodged bench seat.

"Zell!" Selphie shouted as they approached. "Oh Hyne, is she…?"

"She's knocked out but she's breathing," Zell responded in a deep and eerily dark voice.

To Selphie's relief the young librarian's chest was slowly rising and falling as Zell said though her eyes were closed and her mouth hung open, still dripping a small amount of the potion the martial artist gave her. Her dark brown hair was in now-tangled French braid in lieu of the usual pigtails but through it Irvine could see a large knot on her head where it had presumably made swift contact with the harsh metal siding.

"Glad to hear it," Irvine said. "Now I'm gonna need that first aid kit."

Zell's brow furrowed and he turned his head to glare at the hatless cowboy shouting, "The hell you do! For what, your arm? Amy could be really hurt!"

"Well at least she's breathing!" Irvine retorted stepping nearer to Zell. "If I don't take a phoenix down and some of those potions back to Quistis she could fucking _die_!"

Zell's expression went from anger to shock and then turned to sorrow as he realized the implications of what Irvine said. "Fuck me…" Zell muttered softly. "Here, take the whole thing."

"Thanks," Irvine said curtly as he closed the kit in front of the blonde after a quick look-over of its contents. Selphie gave Zell an apologetic smile before she followed Irvine out of the cabin.

"I gotta stay here with her… right? I mean I don't think I should move her in case…"

Zell's words trailed off as they exited the ship quickly and ran towards where Squall and Rinoa sat in the sand. Squall had since taken Quistis into his arms as Rinoa had started to shake slightly. Seeing their friends seriously wounded was not foreign to the group but in battle they were always prepared, always expecting the worst. This… was just chaos. They didn't have any time to react to whatever had happened and they weren't junctioned. Furthermore Rinoa didn't have the military conditioning the others did and could not be expected to get used to seeing her friend lay in a pool of her own blood. She couldn't look and kept her eyes closed tight as she hung onto Squall's shoulder sobbing. She felt powerless as one of her closest friends lay there possibly dying and in an all-too-real way she was. Typically in a situation like this she would have quickly calmed herself after the initial shock ran its course and quickly cast a Life spell followed by a series of Curaga variants after enough time had elapsed to avoid both harming herself and giving her friend enough time to recover from the effects of being yanked back onto the mortal coil. She had done it a dozen times before but as she said… she couldn't cast and she didn't know why.

As Irvine and Selphie arrived on the scene they both plopped themselves down in the soft sand and the cowboy flipped open the first aid kit and fingered a large orange syringe. Selphie reached in and took the strongest potions she could find into her small hands and all three pairs of eyes focused on the shrapnel buried in Quistis' torso. All three were well-versed in the protocols of combat revival but putting what you learned into practice was something else entirely. No one ever got used to it.

"Alright," Squall said, all emotion gone from his voice, "first things first. We need to get this out before we do anything and it needs to be clean and quick. Selphie, once I pull it out I'm going to need you to immediately put pressure on the wound." She gave two rapid nods while placing the potions gently in the sand beside her. "Then Irvine you'll take the phoenix down and stick it into her chest. You know the spot, right?" Squall pointed with his left hand to the side of Quistis' left breast which was now only covered by her gray bra as he had had to cut away her peach top to allow access to the wound and heart. A life hanging in the balance was about the only thing that could trump Squall's sense of modesty. Irvine gulped and held up the syringe. The subtle orange glow of the tube reflected off his face as he stared at the strange liquid. A phoenix down is actually made with refined down "feathers" of the phoenixes kept by the peculiar Shumi tribe. That's what triggers the actual revival mixed with human adrenaline and the chemical compounds used to synthesize cure magic along with saline solution to dilute it. One ounce of pure phoenix down would be enough to cause any healthy adult male's heart to explode.

"Ready?" Squall asked. "Pulling in three… two… one… NOW!"

With a soft and wet tearing sound Squall quickly yanked the offending piece of metal from Quistis' abdomen. Blood began to flow immediately and quickly which was a good sign and Selphie was there with a thick strip of shirt material she had cut from the bottom of Irvine's borrowed tee. Her face grimaced as she pressed down as hard as she could to try and stay the rapid bleeding. "Irvine, go!" she said frantically as she looked across her fallen friend to her husband. The cowboy knelt thee wide-eyed with his hand shaking and in a wavering voice replied, "What… if I miss?" He never did perform well under pressure. "Hynedamnit, Irvine, now's not the time! Do it!" an angry Squall called out with flaring nostrils. In a panic Irvine raised the syringe, closed his eyes, and brought it down in one fluid motion. When he opened them he saw he had hit the mark, as he always did, and pressed down firmly on the pump. When the catalytic liquid entered the heart of the instructor her eyes immediately shot open and her back arched as her lungs desperately gasped for air. Her limbs shook as she started struggling involuntarily while the curaga-laced adrenaline ran its course.

"She's ok!" Rinoa exclaimed, her sobs turning to a mixture of crying and laughing. She let go of Squall's jacket and placed her hands under Quistis' head to keep it from moving.

"She's not out of the woods yet," Squall said. "Keep her steady and let her breathe."

Slowly but surely she stopped shaking and her body, once again, went limp though this time around she was breathing. Quistis' eyes shut in unconscious sleep and underneath Selphie's bloodstained hands the deep wound had all but closed. It would leave a nasty scar but she would live. The four friends let out a collective sigh of relief as Squall picked up one of the potions in his right hand, pinched the sleeping blonde's nose, and poured its contents down her throat. For a few moments they just sat there in complete silence. It was the first time any of them had a chance to fully absorb what had just happened. There were a thousand questions each without any answers to speak of but at the very least they were alive.

Their silence was broken as Zell emerged from the wreckage with a limping Amelia supporting herself with her arm over his shoulders. "Yo!" he said, sounding a bit more like himself. "I'm not getting any signal here… hey is Quisty ok?"

"She will be, right now she just needs to rest," Squall said in his monotone voice as the two approached their little huddle. Zell helped Amy sit herself down with the others before dropping to the ground himself. After another moment of silence he looked sheepishly over towards Irvine and offered, "Hey man, sorry for snapping at you before. I was just worried about Amy."

Amy leaned closer to her beau and Irvine just smiled replying, "Don't worry about it. Hyne knows I'd be a wreck if anything happened to my Sefie."

"So now what do we do?" Selphie asked as if on queue. All eyes fell upon Squall. It was the story of his life: everyone would unconsciously look to him to make decisions for them whether he offered to or not. It was something he never could understand, he always thought he was a terrible leader. To him a leader was charismatic, empathetic, and commanded a sense of loyalty by his very presence. Well one out of three isn't terrible but to Squall it was less than ideal. Squall Leonhart didn't feel like a leader, he felt like a soldier.

"We wait," he said calmly. "I'm sure by this time tomorrow my father will have realized we never made it and will have every available vessel out looking for us. Until then all we can do is sit tight and wait to be rescued."

The five of them simply stared back at him with wide eyes. They weren't surprised by his answer, but rather by his affirmation of his blood ties to Laguna Loire who he had always referred to as either Laguna or "that man".

"We should make a signal fire closer to the tree line and set up some temporary shelters since it's likely we'll be stuck here for a few nights. Salvage anything you can from the Ragnarok. Rinoa, can you watch over Quistis for a while?"

The raven-haired sorceress nodded as Squall stood up and dusted himself off.

"Let's get to work."

* * *

The next couple of hours went by much slower than they should have for all that was being done, but the way Squall figured if they kept busy it would take their mind off of what happened and where they were which was, for all intents and purposes, completely unknown. Irvine and Zell had volunteered to go and find firewood in the surrounding jungle which proved to be much more difficult than they had anticipated. Most of what they found was vines and other exotic plant life and dry wood seemed to be something of a rarity. Squall, Selphie, and Amelia did their best to sort through the wreckage and managed to recover most all of their luggage as well as some supplies that hadn't been destroyed such as tarps, rope, food, water, and anything else that might have been useful. They even managed to pull apart the cushioned seats to use as bedding.

Before long the sun was beginning to set and a decent size fire had been lit a ways away from the wreckage sending its black smoke billowing into the orange-blue sky. Quistis still had not woken up though her breathing had evened out completely and she looked almost peaceful sleeping under the lean-to Rinoa had set up for her. Each of the seven had rather respectable-looking shelters, with the obvious exception of Selphie and Irvine, by the time the sun had passed the horizon made out of tree limbs, palm leaves, tarps, and anything else they could find. If anything could be said about SeeDs it was that they were survivors. They were trained for this. Not much was said the rest of the night. No one really knew _what_ to say so they all stared at the fire in silence. Eventually they all retired to their respective makeshift tents one by one. Squall was the last to move, lost in his thoughts as he always was. He always had preferred solitude but this was a bit extreme. The commander shifted in his seat in the sand and poked the dying fire with a stick. Why had this happened? To his knowledge the Ragnarok had never just lost power before. Even when it was floating for years out in space and populated by those bizarre propagators it retained most of its functionality. Why did this island suddenly appear out of nowhere? Why couldn't Rinoa use her sorceress abilities? Why was any signal from their satellite phones not registering? There were too many questions but Squall did his best not to focus on the why but on the here and now and right now he had to worry about getting his friends out of this place. It would only be a matter of time, right? The world is too small for someone like Squall Leonhart to disappear.

* * *

Squall awoke startled as a noise caught his attention outside of his tent. He slowly reached for his knife that he had placed beneath his "mattress" of seat cushions while keeping the appearance of sleep. The noise grew closer and closer and the sound of footprints in the sand stopped just outside the flap separating him from the beach. Slowly it was pulled back and through the darkness Squall could barely make out the face of Rinoa. She had been crying. He couldn't see her tears but he knew all the same. Call it knight's intuition. Neither of them said a word but then they didn't need to. Squall removed his hand from beneath his mattress and propped himself up on his elbows to face her. Slowly she knelt down and crawled beside him on his bedding. Without even a whisper she wedged herself between his open arms, her back resting against his bare chest. Squall pulled her closer and gave her more room on the mattress. They just laid there in a spooning position, Squall with his arms wrapped around Rinoa as if he was sheltering her from whatever unknown entities lied behind the trees. It was their silent apology and forgiveness wrapped into one moment.

Rinoa sniffled softly and smiled as she cuddled closer to the man lying beside her. Maybe everything would be alright after all.


	4. Chapter 3: Surprise

**A/N:** Hello! Wow, it's certainly been a long-ass time since I've updated this story but I've recently felt compelled to scratch that writer's itch I've been having lately. Sorry it's taken so long for any of you who might have actually been following this story, but better late than never, eh:-P It's been a while since I've written anything so I might be a bit rusty so _please_ critique me if you think something sucks.

Umm… that's about it I guess. I'll hopefully write another chapter soon(ish)!

**Disclaimer:** Amelia is mine, the rest of the characters belong to Square-Enix. So does FFXIII among many many other things. So there.

* * *

**Chapter 3: Surprise**

"What do you **mean** they're not here yet?!?"

Laguna Loire had many flaws but being short-tempered was not commonly listed among them. The celebration was in less than two days and his recluse of a son, who he just found out was living a year ago, had blown him off yet again – one time too many. The president of Esthar was past being hurt or disappointed: he was downright mad.

"No, no… I don't care about any of that. Just get me Balamb Garden on the phone pronto!"

Laguna ran his hands through his long brown hair that was just barely beginning to show signs of gray.

"Yes… I'll hold."

His aggravation was interrupted by a rapping at the door to his office, a place where he rarely remained for more than five minutes at a time and the last place Kiros thought to look.

"What do you want, _now_, Gretel? Can't you see I'm…"

Kiros opened the door slowly but with purpose just as he did everything and approached the ornate wooden desk that didn't seem to suit Laguna's style in the least. It was made of a rare form of cedar that only grew on some island off Centra… or something. It was old and it was boring just like the rest of his office which didn't help the president's deteriorating mood.

"Oh, sorry, K, I thought you were that secretary of mine. What's up?"

He was genuinely glad to see his old war buddy as he came as a welcome distraction to Balamb Garden's hold music which consisted of cheesy synth-pop decades old. Clearly updating it was low on the list of priorities.

"Well I was going to ask you if you had seen or heard from the guests of honor but seeing your face I can tell you haven't."

Laguna's brow furrowed as he slammed down the receiver of his phone. "Screw it, I give up. He can get his award in absentia for all I care."

Unwavering as always, Kiros' expression softened a bit before choosing his words carefully. "You've got to give him time, Laguna. Being a son is as new to him as being a father is to you. That young man has got a lot of layers to work through, he just needs time."

"Well, damnit, at least I'm trying!"

The shrill sound of the phone's ring cut through their conversation like a warm knife through even warmer butter and Laguna disdainfully snatched it up with a curt, "What?"

"President Loire?" the female voice on the other end replied, "This is Xu Shin of Balamb Garden calling to confirm the arrival of Commander Leonhart and company. They have yet to check in."

Laguna took a moment to process this information and quickly asked in return, "They're not still there?"

"No, mister president, they left from here on the Ragnarok at 0805 hours Balamb Time yesterday and we presumed they neglected to check in being busy with… greetings and things."

So he _did_ come! Laguna's disposition went from angry to overjoyed and then immediately skipped to worried out of his mind.

"Well if they're not there, and they're not **here**, where in Hyne's name _are_ they?"

Xu's tone betrayed her normally authoritative sound. "They haven't arrived?"

* * *

The sun was nothing short of blinding as Quistis slowly began to open her eyes. Her head felt like a behemoth had been jumping up and down on it and there was a dull pain in her chest when she breathed. What the hell happened? Where was she? She tried her best to sit up and immediately regretted her decision as she became extremely dizzy and half lowered herself/half fell down to whatever it was she was laying on. 

"Easy there, darlin'," a familiar drawl said next to her. "Don't try an' move just yet, you've been through quite a lot."

Quistis squinted her eyes and tried to focus on the figure before her who was conveniently blocking most of the intrusive rays of the morning sun.

"Irvine? Where are we? Where are the others?" she demanded.

The cowboy took off his hat with his good arm and held it to his chest with a mock expression of hurt on his face and said, "What, being trapped on a deserted island with yours truly isn't a secret fantasy?"

If she could've moved she would've smacked him. Only Irvine Kinneas could make a joke in a situation like… whatever they were in.

"Irvine, you're a married man," she said with a sarcastic tone as if to remind him.

"Which is why," he replied with a grin, "I'll have to ask you not to try any funny business. Believe you me, the last thing you want is a pregnant woman on the warpath."

He laughed to himself and even managed to elicit a smile from the instructor. It was typical Quistis, always asking about and putting others before herself, often at the expense of herself.

"Everyone's here and fine," he continued, his voice becoming more serious. "For a moment there I was afraid we'd lost you."

It was then that Quistis looked down at herself and saw the unsightly scar where the piece of the Ragnarok's hull had pierced her chest, which would explain why her ribs hurt and some were probably cracked, bruised, and/or broken. She also saw that her top had been ripped open, something that she immediately chose to rectify by pulling herself together.

"Ah, sorry 'bout that, Quisty. We had to mess up that suit of yours to get that big hunk 'o metal out of you and to give you the phoenix down. Are you thirsty? Hungry? We don't have much with us but…"

"Irvine, where are we?" Quistis interrupted.

The cowboy put his Stetson back on his head and with a sigh replied, "I don't rightly know. The ship's totaled and none of our phones are working. All we know is that we're on some island probably off Centra somewhere and that we're keeping a signal fire blazin' to attract anyone who might be lookin' for us. It won't be too long before someone sees that we're missin' and sends people to rescue us. We just gotta sit tight in the meantime."

Quistis went to speak but was interrupted by a loud resounding, "QUISTY'S AWAKE!!"

Immediately arriving next to Irvine was a visibly flushed and out of breath Selphie who promptly eased herself down into a sitting position in the sand.

"Baby," the cowboy said with a look of amused frustration, "what did I tell you about all that runnin' around? You've gotta take it easy for a while longer yet."

Selphie just stuck her tongue and pushed Irvine's hat down in his face. Their cuteness made Quistis more nauseous than when she tried to sit up.

"So how are you feeling, Quisty? You had us sooo worried," Selphie asked with a smile.

Quistis slowly began to sit herself up again, this time more successfully. Her headache wasn't showing any signs of going away but she could just grit her teeth and bear it, an act she had become an expert at performing.

"I'm fine, just a little dizzy. It'll pass."

She looked down at her Garden-issue digital watch but the face had been smashed in, undoubtedly in the crash. She cursed under her breath and as if to answer her question Irvine offered, "No use, no electronics seem to be working. When Rag lost power so did everythin' else."

"So did our luggage survive the crash? I need to change out of this thing," Quistis asked with a hint of disgust in her voice. Not only was her trademark once-peach battle suit torn open, it was soaked through with her own blood which had since dried. Selphie seemed to have changed into another ridiculous tee that was again probably once Irvine's. She flat out refused to wear the typical maternity clothing calling it words like 'restricting' and 'frumpy' to name a few. She was tiny enough in any case where she could still fit into her jeans with the top button undone and a large tee that seemed small on her. All of Irvine's cowboy clothes looked the same so it was impossible to tell if he had a fresh change without getting close enough to smell him.

"Oh yeah, Rin and Amy have been gathering anything they could find together in a big pile. Do you want me to get you something?" Selphie asked.

"No, I'll get it myself."

Quistis scooted herself forward slowly until she was out of the small lean-to she woke up under. She squinted her eyes in concentration and pure force of will and slowly but steadily she brought herself to her feet. She wavered a bit and had to grab onto Irvine's right arm which was quickly outstretched to support her.

"Hey now," the cowboy objected, "Squall said you should be resting."

"Squall's my commander, not my doctor," she retorted blankly while getting her bearings. "I'll be fine, really. I've been through worse."

She wasn't lying. Quistis Trepe had seen and endured many horrors that seemed unavoidable as a Class A SeeD, not to mention the fact that she had taken to volunteering in Dr. Kadowaki's office during her spare time and tackled picking the good doctor's medical dictionary of a brain with the academic fervor with which she did everything. She knew what she was talking about but, truth be told, she hated sitting still. She needed to be doing _something_ or she would go insane. Were she left to 'rest' in her little shelter she would feel useless and would be left with only her thoughts and for her that was a dangerous place to be. Selphie simply smiled and took her hand, pointing in the direction of where Rinoa and Amelia were still busy gathering things together, be they luggage that was strewn about the beach or anything remotely useful they could salvage from the wreckage of the once-majestic Ragnarok. Together the two young women made their way over slowly, more for Quistis' benefit than Selphie's, but Irvine was grateful that _someone_ was able to slow his wife down if only for a moment.

"Yo! Irvine!"

He turned his head to the left to see a sprinting Zell tearing his way towards him. The martial artist was a blur of blue, black, and gold until he finally came to a stop a few feet before the sharpshooter. The slash down Zell's face wasn't deep enough to warrant needing stitches but it would likely leave a scar that Irvine thought would rival Squall's on the badass-o-meter.

"There's nothing but beach for miles and miles here, man!" Zell continued.

Irvine smirked and replied, "Well what did you expect? This **is** an island, genius."

The blond instinctively play-punched him on his left shoulder and Irvine winced at the pain. Zell gave him a shocked and apologetic look after realizing he hit his friend's sling-bound appendage.

"Sorry dude, but hey! You know what I mean, there aren't any landmarks or anything. Just a whole lot of sand and not much else, but I only ran for about five miles or so."

"Wonderful," Irvine replied in his usual nonchalant way. "You hungry?"

"Always," Zell said with a wide grin.

"C'mon, I think they found some MRE's or something like that in the cargo hold. There probably aren't many so we gotta make 'em last until we're rescued so don't hog 'em all, alright?"

Zell let out a laugh as they walked towards where the girls were by the Ragnarok's wreckage. "No promises, man. No promises."

Squall arrived around the same time they did from his exploratory walk down the other side of the beach. His silence was a clear indication that he didn't find anything of note just as Zell had. Clearly the two had very different methods of expressing themselves.

The young commander looked around at the six pairs of eyes seated on whatever was available expecting some sort of direction from his mouth. He first focused on Quistis who had discarded her ruined outfit in exchange for jeans and a white tank top. He specifically remembered telling Irvine and Selphie to keep her immobile for as long as possible, but knew Quistis too well to be surprised.

"Glad to see you're up and about," he said, his face still looking as if he was deep in thought. "How are you feeling?"

"I've been better, but I'll be fine," she replied with a small smile. "And thank you, all of you I guess, for saving my life."

"It was mostly Squall, Selphie, and Irvine," Rinoa chimed in. "I tried casting, but… I can't."

Rinoa's expression sunk and sensing her shift Quistis put a hand on hers. "Still, thanks all the same."

"Hell," Zell laughed, "we've all saved each others' asses so many times by now that it goes without saying."

"Just don't overdo it," Squall said, which was met with a nod.

"Anyway, Rinoa and Amy found nine MREs in the Rag and some bottled water," he continued, motioning behind him to the nine boxes stacked neatly next to a small collection of clear plastic bottles on the severed overhang of what used to be the Ragnarok's cargo hold. "That's all we have. We'll each get one and save the rest for emergencies."

"And what about those of us eating for two?" Selphie asked with a sheepish grin and an overly flamboyant rubbing of her belly.

Everyone laughed and even Squall managed to smirk as he replied, "Alright, you can have an extra but _don't_ eat them all at once. Now since we can't be certain exactly how long we'll be stuck here we need to focus on four things: finding food, finding fresh water, making our shelters a little more habitable, and keeping that fire going. Chances are we'll be here for a few days, but don't get _too_ comfortable."

With any luck they'd get rescued **after** the ceremony ordeal but knowing Laguna Loire he was probably going to put the whole damn world on hold.

* * *

"Put the whole damn WORLD on hold for all I care, we can't have this thing without my SON and his FRIENDS who are MISSING!!" 

Ward gave his best 'calm down' look to the Estharian president but even his commanding, albeit mute, presence wasn't loud enough for Laguna to take notice. He looked over at Kiros who stood on the other side of the circular office and all the dark-skinned advisor could do was shrug. When Laguna had his mind set on something it was almost impossible to divert or distract him from his chosen task. Usually they'd just let him ride it out until he got bored enough that they could talk some sense into him and eventually lead him back to what he _should_ be doing, such as signing some new legislation or negotiating some transit union dispute. This time, however, was quite a bit different. The Balamb Six, as they have come to be known, were missing chief among which was Laguna's son.

"Well get every available airship, boat, **whatever**, out there looking for them!"

…

"Hell I don't know where to look, if I did then we wouldn't have this problem now would we?"

…

"Just find them, ok?"

The slamming of the receiver down on the body of the phone was almost deafening in the otherwise silent office. Laguna had never looked so concerned, even during the conflict with Adel he held himself together better. He sat there at his desk with his head propped on his hand for a few minutes as if he was lost in thought. Kiros and Ward could only look at each other, neither knowing what to do or how to console their friend. Suddenly Laguna's hands slammed down on his desk and he stood up. Without a ward he walked quickly around the corner of his desk and headed for the door. He was met immediately with the broad chest of the silent giant Ward as he moved in front of the office door.

"Get out of my way, Ward," Laguna said with somber resolve.

"And where are you going?" Kiros asked, already knowing the answer.

"To find my son, now move," the president demanded putting a futile hand on his large friend in attempt to budge him.

"Like Hell you are," Kiros said calmly, to which Laguna responded by turning around and glaring at his war buddy.

"You'll have plenty to do coordinating the search from here, not to mention the inevitable press conference you'll need to call, oh and also running Esthar."

"Esthar can wait, this is my **son**!" Laguna shouted with grim determination.

"Laguna, you and I both know that you'll only slow them down. We have people trained for this sort of thing, let them do their jobs. You can help Squall from here."

Ward placed a calloused hand on his friend's shoulder, turning him around and giving a look and nod that spoke more clearly than most can manage who _have_ their vocal chords intact. The president turned back around with a defeated sigh and let his tense shoulders slouch. With a single tear in his eye he looked up at Kiros and said, "You're right. You're always right. It's just ironic, you know, that when he finally comes to see me after all of my calls and letters, even if it was for some dumb formal ceremony, he falls off the map. A little **too** ironic."

Kiros put a consoling hand on his friend's shoulder and said, "Don't worry, I'm sure they're fine, wherever they are. Squall will have the situation under control."

* * *

Squall sat quietly with his back against the fuselage of the ruined dragon-ship that was most likely starting to rust in the salty sea air. He never cared for the Balamb Garden standard issue Meal Ready to Eat but time and time again he ate them on missions without complaint. And that's exactly what this was to him: a mission. The objective? To keep his friends alive, healthy, and, if possible, happy until their rescue comes. It seemed simple and straightforward but like most things in life there was much more to this 'mission' than meets the mind's eye. On missions he was involved in and even led there were clear and concise goals. There were protocols to follow. On this island there were too many unknowns, the most important being when or _if_ they would be found. Doubts infested his mind like sharks in bloody water but he pushed them away just as he kept them close at hand. They **had** to be found. Before long Garden and Esthar both would have realized they were gone, if they hadn't already, and used all resources available to find them. A soldier's life was, in a manner of speaking, expendable but these particular soldiers were invaluable… or so he'd like to think. 

He looked next to him as Quistis managed to both read a book and hold a conversation with Rinoa at once, something that always amazed and confused the hell out of him. Maybe it was a female innate talent but Squall was abysmal at multitasking. She seemed to be holding up well but Squall could tell she was in pain. The corners of her mouth would turn down every once in a while coupled with a furrowed brow and squinted eyes. The reinstated instructor had one of the best poker faces he knew but even she had her tells. Rinoa on the other hand, who was technically a civilian, could be read like an open book. At least to everyone else but him, or rather he could read just fine but seemed to fail miserably at speaking her language. He stared wistfully at her as she delicately picked apart the foil wrapper of the dry chocolate bar, the only thing that remotely tasted like its intended imitation, with her slender fingers. She sent him a small smile before turning back to Quistis who had apparently said something funny because Rinoa started to giggle. He loved seeing her laugh. Whenever the raven-haired beauty smiled or laughed everything in the world seemed to make sense. It embodied a certain sort of innocence – the kind he was robbed of.

Behind them Zell was seated in the sand swatting at the box of Selphie's second MRE as she dangled it over his head like one of Angelo's doggie treats. The brawler had mellowed out some since meeting Amelia, who was sitting behind him scratching his head and saying something to the effect of "Sit, boy, sit!" He waved his arms wildly just out of reach much to the amusement of the two girls, but Squall was sure most of his frustration was for show. He was still enthusiastic, but also responsible. In fact Zell occasionally took older students on their field missions if he wasn't somewhere on a mission of his own. Amelia was still working at the library quietly and diligently as she was oft to do but the old crone that inhabited the Head Librarian position announced her retirement earlier in the month and Amy was a shoe-in for the position even at her young age. Selphie, who still hadn't grown tired of bouncing around teasing Zell with her 'necessary' extra food, obviously couldn't go on missions in her condition so Squall, with Quistis' prompting, proposed to give her a position teaching the younger students which she took to with great enthusiasm. Cid liked the idea as Selphie was always good with the young ones, which would come in handy with her own. Irvine wasn't technically a SeeD during the war but Cid considered that his very elaborate field exam and gave the Galbadian the honor upon their return shortly following the party which Selphie documented with her camcorder. The rest of that tape, however, was for their eyes only. In a way Squall was jealous of Irvine as he watched the man stare entranced at his wife with his usual sly smile, propped back in the sand with his good arm. No matter the situation he never got tired of showering Selphie with affection. It was very public and often very inappropriate physical affection, but affection none the less. That was something Rinoa longed for, especially, though of course not to that degree. Squall was getting better but it was a slow process, the coming out of the shell he lived in alone for seventeen years.

The sun was beating down on the seven young men and women from its highest position in the sky and Squall finished the last of the water he had rationed for himself. With a bit of a stretch he stood and made his way over to where Rinoa was seated in the sand. She looked over at him and Quistis took the cue to focus the full of her attention to her book that had been roughed up quite a bit in the crash but somehow still remained mostly intact.

"Hey," he said softly. "How is it?" motioning to the chocolate bar she was finishing.

Rinoa swallowed the last of it and replied, "It's not bad if you like the taste of cardboard."

They laughed which almost broke the sort of awkward tension that still existed between them since the day before. They hadn't really had time to just talk since their argument.

"Rinoa, I'm sorry about what I said yesterday," Squall said. "I shouldn't have jumped to conclusions, I've just…"

"And I'm sorry for reacting the way I did," she interrupted. "I know you've been under a lot of stress lately, I just miss you a lot and wish we could spend more time together. But I guess time is all we have now until someone finds us so maybe we can start right now."

Her smile was so sweet it was sickening with just a hint of coyness for flavor. Only Rinoa Heartilly could find the silver lining in a plane crash. In fact, everyone seemed to be in good spirits despite all that had happened. Perhaps that was because rescue wasn't as much hope as it was inevitability in everyone's minds. It was almost like an unorthodox and forced beach getaway.

Squall returned her smile and leaned in close, staring into her warm brown eyes for a second before touching his lips to hers. She was a bit startled at first but quickly committed to the kiss. As they parted Rinoa asked with wide eyes, "What was that for?"

"Do I need a reason?" Squall replied with a smirk.

Rinoa narrowed her eyes and with a look of surprised approval she slowly said, "Good answer."

Squall stood and held out his hand for Rinoa to take it and she did just that as she followed suit. Holding her hand, much to everyone's surprise, he led her to where everyone else was still laughing at Selphie and Zell's antics but when they arrived all eyes turned to them.

"I hope everyone enjoyed their meal," Squall said somewhat sarcastically, "it'll be our last unless we can find some of our own on this island. In a few minutes I'm going to go into the jungle and I want Zell to come with me."

Zell nodded but Irvine struggled to his feet saying, "Wait just a second. How do you plan on goin' huntin' without Irvine? Is scarface gonna go wrestle 'em down for you?"

Zell stood up with a grin and with a horrible fake accent said, "Say hello to my little friend," holding up his fist.

"You save your little friend for Amy, tough guy," Irvine quipped back causing Zell's face to immediately turn a bright hue of red and Amelia to giggle nervously as the others burst into laughter. It was obvious that it hurt Quistis to laugh but she couldn't help herself.

"Irvine," Squall said once everyone calmed down, "Your arm is broken."

"Sure is," he replied, "and luckily it wasn't my shootin' arm and that's all I need as long as I have ammunition."

"Do we?" Squall asked towards no one in particular.

"Y-yes, we managed to find a few boxes as well as Exter," Amy answered.

"I'd rather play with… I mean _tend to_ the fire anyway," Zell said with a mischievous grin on his face that didn't settle well with anyone.

Squall eyed them both for a minute and said, "Fine, Irvine we'll leave when you're ready."

"I'm ready now," he replied.

"Alright. Everyone else work on making those shelters a little more habitable," Squall said looking back towards everyone. "We'll be back soon."

Squall and Irvine walked off towards where the girls were organizing all of their belongings and anything else that could be of use from the wreckage and found their weapons. Some might think it unnecessary to bring such things to an awards ceremony in a place as safe as Esthar but one of the many credos that were drilled into their minds as students was "be prepared". For once it seemed their superfluous preparation had actually come in handy. Irvine fingered his gun as he shook the sand off of it and proceeded to inspect it as best as he could to make sure nothing strange got lodged inside its inner workings. Squall did the same with Lionheart and fortunately nothing seemed to be wrong with either weapon aside from a few scratches or dings from being thrown around violently.

Squall nodded to Irvine but the cowboy was looking past him with a smirk on his face. The young commander could already tell he was looking at Rinoa who had since walked up beside him.

"What are you doing?" Squall asked looking over at her. The asking was more of a formality since he already knew the answer.

"I'm coming with you," she responded very matter-of-factly with a determined look.

"Absolutely not," he retorted. "Why don't you go and help the others?"

Rinoa crossed her arms in front of her and furrowed her brow, which was never a good sign. "What, is this a 'boys only' trip? What happened to wanting to spend more time together starting _now_?"

Squall put a hand up to his face and wiped some sweat from his brow that had accumulated in the sweltering heat. "Rinoa," he said, his voice showing a bit of concerned frustration, "I'm not trying to leave you out; I'm trying to protect you. We don't know what might be out there and you're unarmed and can't cast for whatever reason. Have you tried since yesterday?"

"Yes…" she replied, her tone and expression softening.

"Well we can talk about it when I get back. We won't be long, I promise."

Rinoa looked down and shuffled her feet in the sand. As much as she wanted to make a fuss and argue she knew he was right. She didn't bother to bring her unique pinwheel contraption with her anywhere anymore since she had been studying with Edea once a week on how to focus and control her abilities. In the past year she had come a long way from her unexpected bursts of natural magic in the war and no longer needed to draw most magic to use it, but she was still far from what Edea would consider finished.

"Ok," she resigned with a sigh, making eye contact again. "Just be careful." She stood on her toes and gave Squall a quick peck on the cheek before turning around to return to the others.

"Shall we?" Irvine asked with a grin holding Exter across his shoulder.

Squall simply walked on ahead into the tree line and Irvine followed suit. The beach had the head of direct sunlight but the air in the jungle was humid and thick. The two men walked towards nowhere in particular taking in the sights, the sounds, and the smells of the surrounding forest. Birds chattered noisily above them and seemed undisturbed by their intrusion. They were colorful and there were some that neither had ever seen before but otherwise unremarkable. As they trekked deeper the ground grew more moist but showed no signs of fresh water and aside from the birds no animals of any consequence could be found other than small lizards and the occasional snake that would slither away from the sound of their footsteps in the crushed foliage.

"Soooo… what's the deal with you and Rinoa?" Irvine asked, breaking the silence that hung as heavy as the air.

Squall cut an offending branch in front of him with his gunblade and a piece swung down and caught him across his cheek. He cursed and stopped in his tracks for a moment before continuing. "Please don't make me regret my decision to bring you."

"I was just saying," Irvine continued, "that y'all have been kinda tense around each other lately. Is something the matter?"

Squall groaned inwardly as he sliced through another vine. Everyone knew that he was never one to just open up with people, even his friends, without much preparation and coaxing. "If I tell you will it shut you up?"

"Cross my heart," Irvine answered with a bit of a laugh.

"She's upset that we don't see each other very often now because I'm stuck at the office all the time," he admitted not slowing his pace through the brush.

"Oh is that all?" Irvine asked. "Hell, that can be fixed easy enough…"

"I know," Squall interrupted, "when we get back we'll meet each other every day for lunch."

"Lunch?" Irvine laughed. "I was gonna say she should move in with you, man. You've got that huge new place and everything."

Squall stopped dead in his tracks and turned around with a scowl on his face. "Look, Irvine, just because you and…"

His words fell dead as he thought he saw something move in the trees behind his friend.

"And what?" Irvine said with a smirk.

Squall quickly put his index finger to his lips and made a shushing sound. It was then that he _heard_ something move. Judging by the amount of leaves that were rustled it was something big. Really big. Instinctively the two young men crouched down and tried their best to see what was causing the disturbance in the trees.

"What was that?" Irvine whispered.

"I don't know. It's too quiet to be a T-Rexaur, let me try and get a little closer and see."

Slowly but surely Squall stepped out from behind the fallen tree they had taken cover behind. He saw leaves continue to rustle and branches bend but he saw nothing that was causing it. He crept further into a clearing that looked like it had been freshly made.

"I don't see anything…" he said a little louder back to Irvine who was still behind the tree.

Irvine mouthed a response but it was silenced by a deafening roar that sounded almost like the whistle of a giant train. Squall spun around, Lionheart in hand, and dug into the ground with his stance in hopes that it would do any good.


End file.
